USA, VA: Small brewery in plans for Blackburn Industrial Park

The owner of a nearly 50-acre farm property on the western outskirts of Blackburn plans to build a small brewery at the Blacksburg Industrial Park, Roanoke Times reported on November 25.

A company that’s registered to land and business owner Patrick Bixler has filed a site plan with the town for a 20,000-square-foot brewery facility on approximately five acres of land on Commerce Street. The site plan filing is one of a handful of steps Bixler will need to clear before he’s able to start construction – a process for which town officials couldn’t provide a timeline.

The site plan doesn’t give the brewery’s exact name, but the operation will not be foreign ground for Bixler, who couldn’t be reached for comment on this story.

Bixler owns a 48-acre property on the south side of Glade Road that houses Glade Road Growing, an operation that grows and sells organic food on the farm itself, at the Blacksburg Farmers Market and at grocers Eats Natural Foods and Oasis World Market.

That property is also home to Rising Silo Brewery, a semi-outdoor and farm-themed beer establishment that also makes and provides its own food at the request of donations.
While Bixler owns the land, couple Greg and Jess Zielske operate Rising Silo.

The establishment grew out of brewing activities a few years ago by Greg Zielske, who made batches for the workers at Glade Road Growing.

Town officials said the Commerce Street brewery is slated to be a small operation.
For now, there are no plans for the brewery to serve food. It will have a tasting room, town officials said.

Because it involves beverage production, the brewery is an allowed use under the park’s industrial zoning. Town officials don’t anticipate that the business will need to run its plans through any public hearings before it can proceed.

The town, however, will need to approve the site and building plans.

Kinsey O’Shea, the town’s development administrator, said the proposal will also need to clear the Historic or Design Review Board, which is specifically required to approve all new buildings at the industrial park.

25 November, 2016